Systems and methods of networking enhancements using location based services

ABSTRACT

A location based service and method configured to provide a mechanism for information to a subscribing user. The method is implemented on a computing infrastructure and includes querying one or more databases for matching information of a third party that is associated with one or more mobile devices that pass within a predefined location at one or more predefined intervals. The method further includes providing location information to a subscribing user of the one or more mobile devices that have the matching information and pass within the predefined location.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation application of co-pending U.S.application Ser. No. 12/759,053, filed on Apr. 13, 2010, the contents ofwhich are incorporated by reference in its entirety herein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention generally relates to location based services and, inparticular, to systems and methods for enhancing social networkingsystems using location based services.

BACKGROUND

Faced with an increasingly difficult challenge in growing both averagerevenue per user (ARPU) and numbers of subscribers, content providerssuch as, for example, social networking systems, and network carriers,are trying to develop a host of new products, services, and businessmodels based on services. One such service is location-based services,which provide information specific to a location including actuallocations of a user. It is expected that location based services willgenerate additional business for the content provider and networkcarriers, from both the mobile user and service providers.

For the mobile user as well as the service provider (and networkcarriers) and content provider, location-based services offer manyopportunities. For example, location-based services can increase revenueof the service provider, e.g., content providers, while improvingservices to end users, e.g., mobile users. Some examples oflocation-based services that can be provided to the mobile user include:

-   -   Providing the nearest business or service, such as an ATM or        restaurant;    -   Providing weather reports which are germane to the location        where the user is using the mobile device; and/or    -   Providing advertisements to end users, e.g., recipients, etc.

For the content provider and/or network carrier, location-based servicesprovide value add by enabling services. A major issue has evolved,though, with regard to providing location based services. For example,content providers, wireless and network carriers as well as otherservice providers need a way to effectively and efficiently provide suchservices, while increasing revenue. Accordingly, there exists a need inthe art to overcome the deficiencies and limitations describedhereinabove.

SUMMARY

In a first aspect of the invention, a method implemented on a computinginfrastructure comprises. The method comprises querying one or moredatabases for matching information of a third party that is associatedwith one or more mobile devices that pass within a predefined locationat one or more predefined intervals. The method further comprisesproviding location information to a subscribing user of the one or moremobile devices that have the matching information and pass within thepredefined location.

In another aspect of the invention, a computer program product comprisesa computer usable storage medium having readable program code tangiblyembodied in the storage medium. The computer program product is operableto: query one or more databases of at least one or more socialnetworking systems or interest groups to obtain information associatedwith one or more users with mobile devices entering a predefinedlocation; determine a match between the one or more users with mobiledevices and a subscriber using the queried information; obtain locationinformation of the one or more users that are matched to the subscriber;and provide the location information of the one or more matched users tothe subscriber.

In another aspect of the invention, a method for providing enhancementsto a social network to one or more users comprises providing a computerinfrastructure. The computer infrastructure is operable to: query one ormore databases of at least one or more social networking systems orinterest groups to obtain information associated with one or more userswith mobile devices entering a predefined location; determine a matchbetween the one or more users with mobile devices and a subscriber usingthe queried information; obtain location information of the one or moreusers that are matched to the subscriber; and provide the locationinformation of the one or more matched users to the subscriber.

In yet another aspect of the invention, a computer system includes aCPU, a computer readable memory and a computer readable storage media.The computer system includes first program instructions to query one ormore databases for matching information of a third party that isassociated with one or more mobile devices that pass within a predefinedlocation at one or more predefined intervals. The computer systemincludes second program instructions to provide location information toa subscribing user of the one or more mobile devices that have thematching information and pass within the predefined location.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention is described in the detailed description whichfollows, in reference to the noted plurality of drawings by way ofnon-limiting examples of exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 1 shows an illustrative environment for implementing processes inaccordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 shows a representative location map in accordance with aspects ofthe invention;

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram showing proximity alerts in accordance withaspects of the invention;

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram showing proximity events identified by alocation based service in accordance with aspects of the invention;

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of vicinity matching in accordance with aspectsof the invention; and

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of group messaging with location filtering inaccordance with aspects of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The invention generally relates to location based services and, inparticular, to systems and methods for enhancing social networkingsystems (e.g., interest groups, etc.) using location based services. Thepresent invention uses location based services and location, e.g.,geo-boundaries, to offer a richer social networking experience forsubscribers using mobile devices. More specifically, the presentinvention provides location information to one or more subscribers ofone or more social networking systems. In embodiments, the locationinformation is of a third party that has also subscribed to one or moreof the social networking systems, in order to inform subscribers thatthe third party is within a certain defined location/area (e.g.,geo-boundary). This allows users/subscribers/third parties (hereinafterreferred to as “subscribers”) of social networking systems to locateother subscribers. This, in turn, can advantageously expedite in-person(i.e., face-to-face) introductions and/or interactions.

Social networking systems allow people to socialize using the Internet.Typically, these social networking systems introduce or maintainrelationships amongst subscribers with similar interests. The currentlimitation with these social networking systems is to keep continuityamongst its subscribers once a subscriber is away from their personalcomputer. Some advances have been made by offering SMS alerts to keepthe subscribers updated on new information of other subscribers, andusing light weight web versions of the sites accessible by mobiledevices. However, these advances have their limitations, i.e., they donot provide location information of subscribers, in order to expeditein-person (i.e., face-to-face) introductions and/or interactions. Thepresent invention thus extends these “mobile capabilities” by leveraginglocation based services offered by mobile telephone providers or otherservice providers.

As subscribers start adopting mobile devices that support richer mediatypes, the subscriber can take the full social networking experiencewith them everywhere. This invention also takes advantage of thelocation capabilities of the next generation devices to enhance thatexperience by allowing subscribers to connect based on their locationand the location of other subscribers. Advantageously, it is alsopossible to provide real time location information to a subscriber of asocial networking system.

Wireless companies have the ability to determine a person's locationthrough various mechanisms. For example, some wireless devices are GPSenabled allowing them to use satellites to determine their location. Inother cases, cell tower triangulation or single cell tower location isused to determine location. For more coarse-grained depths using a webbrowser, an IP address lookup table correlates the IP address with aspecific region. This is useful if a service does not need to know theexact location of an individual. GPS and triangulation methods can beimplemented with a location platform provided by a service or contentprovider. In implementation, the methods and system of the presentinvention can take advantage of these location services in order toprovide real time location information to subscribers of a service.

The present invention can use existing databases of social networkingsystems or create new databases. In embodiments, the present inventioncan be implemented by a service provider (e.g., network carrier) or oneor more social networking systems. In one implementation using a serviceprovider, for example, a subscriber can subscribe to a location basedservice which, in turn, will query social networking sites which areidentified by the subscriber. The service provider would poll a certain,defined location for mobile devices. The service provider would thenquery the one or more social networking systems to find a match with themobile devices (e.g., a device that has been identified as belonging toa third party that belongs to the same social network as the subscriber,or has one or more of the same interests as the subscriber). Once amatch is found on one of the social networking systems, the serviceprovider would then provide location information of that matching thirdparty to the subscriber. The matching third party can also be providedwith a notification to allow the third party to opt out of the serviceand/or be provided with location information of the subscribing user.

In another implementation using a service provider, the service providermay maintain its own database of information. In this implementation,the subscriber would provide certain information to the service providersuch as, for example, identification information and interests, and/orthird parties within their social network or interest groups. Theidentification information can be, for example, identificationinformation of the mobile device, which can be correlated with aparticular subscriber, i.e., name, telephone number, etc. The serviceprovider would then maintain a database of such information. In thismanner, the service provider can bypass the social networking systems toprovide a service added value to its customers.

In yet another approach, the subscriber would provide subscriptioninformation to social networking systems (content providers). In thisapproach, the social networking systems would only need to requestlocation information from the network carrier. Alternatively, thecontent provider can use other location systems, as discussed below, tofind devices (matches) within certain locations. This approach takesadvantage of existing information.

Exemplary System Environment and Infrastructure

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, the present inventionmay be embodied as a system, method or computer program product.Accordingly, the present invention may take the form of an entirelyhardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment (includingfirmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.) or an embodimentcombining software and hardware aspects that may all generally bereferred to herein as a “circuit,” “module” or “system.” Furthermore,the present invention may take the form of a computer program productembodied in any tangible medium of expression having computer-usableprogram code embodied in the medium.

Any combination of one or more computer usable or computer readablemedium(s) may be utilized. The computer-usable or computer-readablemedium may be, for example but not limited to, an electronic, magnetic,optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus,device, or propagation medium. More specific examples (a non-exhaustivelist) of the computer-readable medium would include the following:

-   -   a portable computer diskette,    -   a hard disk,    -   a random access memory (RAM),    -   a read-only memory (ROM),    -   an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash        memory),    -   a portable compact disc read-only memory (CDROM), and/or    -   an optical storage device.        The computer-usable or computer-readable medium could even be        paper or another suitable medium upon which the program is        printed, as the program can be electronically captured, via, for        instance, optical scanning of the paper or other medium, then        compiled, interpreted, or otherwise processed in a suitable        manner, if necessary, and then stored in a computer memory.

In the context of this document, a computer-usable or computer-readablemedium may be any medium that can contain, store, communicate,propagate, or transport the program for use by or in connection with theinstruction execution system, apparatus, or device. The computer usableprogram code may be transmitted using any appropriate transmission mediavia a network.

Computer program code for carrying out operations of the presentinvention may be written in any combination of one or more programminglanguages, including an object oriented programming language such asJava, Smalltalk, C++ or the like and conventional procedural programminglanguages, such as the “C” programming language or similar programminglanguages. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computer,partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partlyon the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely onthe remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remotecomputer may be connected to the user's computer through any type ofnetwork. This may include, for example, a local area network (LAN) or awide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an externalcomputer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet ServiceProvider).

More specifically, FIG. 1 shows an illustrative environment 10 formanaging the processes in accordance with the invention. To this extent,the environment 10 can be representative of one or more socialnetworking systems or interest groups, as examples. The environment 10can also be representative of an infrastructure of a service provider.Hereinafter, the environment will be discussed with respect to a socialnetworking system, for ease of explanation.

The environment includes a server 12. The server 12, in turn, includes acomputing device 14 that can perform the processes described below. Byusing this computing device 14, the network carrier and/or contentprovider and/or service provider will not have to make any significantinfrastructure investments, as the preexisting infrastructure isutilized with the present invention.

The computing device 14 and/or server 12 includes computer program codeor control (program code logic) operable to make computing device 14and/or server 12 capable of performing the services described herein,e.g., providing location information of subscribing parties. Thecomputer program control can be implemented as one or more singlepurpose (dedicated) processers (CPU) that implement the computer programcontrol. The computer program control can be one or computing modulesimplemented in memory 22A or directly in memory and, which is servicedand/or maintained by a service provider such as, for example, a networkcarrier or social networking system (content provider).

In one contemplated implementation, a subscriber 50 can subscribe to aservice provider (e.g., location based service of a network carrier) 70which, in turn, will query the databases of one or more socialnetworking systems (or its own database) to find matches (e.g., thirdparties that belong to the same networking systems or have similarinterests). In the implementation of querying one or more socialnetworking systems, the service provider 70 can poll locations requestedby the subscriber for every device that is entering and exiting suchlocation. The service provider can also query the databases 22B ofsocial networking systems (each of which can be represented byenvironment 10) to determine whether there are any matches amongst thepolled devices, e.g., whether any of the polled devices belong to thesame social network or interest group of the subscriber. Once a match isfound, the service provider 70 provides the location information of thematch (e.g., third parties) to the subscriber 50. The locationinformation can be given to the subscriber 50, immediately or,alternatively, the provider can first request authorization from the“matched” third party, prior to providing the location information tothe subscriber 50. The social networking systems 10 can charge theservice provider 70 and/or subscribers (mobile user) 50 for its databasecontents using charging platform 80.

In the implementation of using its own database, for example, eachsubscriber 50 would provide certain information to the service provider70 such as, for example, identification information, interests, thirdparties in the subscriber's network, and/or social networkingsubscription information. The identification information can be, forexample, identification information of a mobile device, which can becorrelated with a particular subscriber, i.e., name, telephone number,etc. This information would then be maintained on the database of theservice provider 70. Once location and matching information is obtained,the service provider 70 will provide the location information of thosematching third parties to the subscriber 50. The location informationcan be given to the subscriber 50 or, alternatively, the provided canfirst request authorization from the “matched” third party, prior toproviding the location information to the subscriber 50.

In another implementation, the social networking system 10 can directlyprovide the services to the subscriber. In this implementation, thesocial networking system would query its own database 22B or databasesof other social networking systems to determine if there are any matches(using the subscriber 50 provided interests, memberships in othernetworking systems, interests groups, etc.) The social networking system10 would request location information from a network carrier of alldevices entering and/or exiting a predefined location, and using thisinformation would find a match. Once a match is obtained from its owndatabase or that of other social networking systems of third partieswithin a certain location, (e.g., geo-boundary, requested location, orvicinity of the subscriber 50), the social networking system 10 wouldprovide the location information to the subscriber 50 or, alternatively,first request authorization from the “matched” third party, prior toproviding the location information to the subscriber 50. In thisimplementation, the social networking system would charge the subscriber50 for the location information using the using charging platform 80.Additionally or alternatively, the service provider 70 can charge thesocial networking system 10 using charging platform 80. In still furtherembodiments, the other social networking systems can charge therequesting social networking system 10 for its information using thecharging platform 80.

In embodiments, the service provider (e.g., location platform) 70 isconfigured to provide a mechanism for generating geo-boundaries andreceive location information of mobile devices entering and exiting suchgeo-boundaries. In embodiments, the geo-boundaries may be set at anydistance or interval, and at any location such as, for example, apopular restaurant. The geo-boundaries can thus be designated as anyarea based on coordinates that will be monitored for location enableddevices entering and exiting such boundaries. These geo-boundaries canbe designated as zones of interest.

Also, in embodiments, to provide a finer granularity, geo-boundaries maybe set within geo-boundaries such as, for example, several boundarieswithin a certain distance. As an illustrative example, multiplegeo-boundaries spaced apart from one another can be set for a specificshopping mall. This will allow the system and method of the presentinvention to localize any matches and, more specifically, any matches toa very particular area.

By way of further example, geo-boundaries can be monitored and orcreated (constructed) by detecting when a third party and/or subscriber50 is entering or passing through each boundary. In embodiments,location information of the subscriber 50 or third party can be obtainedfrom a handset by A-GPS, GPS or through triangulation methods, all ofwhich are methods known to those of skill in the art. As a mode ofoperation, as the third party traverses a set geo-boundary, a triggeringevent will automatically occur (e.g., the handset will be detected) atwhich time the location platform of the service provider 70 will obtainthe location of the handset of the third party. The active devices willsend a signal to the location platform of the service provider 70. Inthis way, the service provider 70 will detect the third party ofinterest as they cross the geo-boundaries, designated zones of interestor within a certain vicinity of the subscriber 50.

In further embodiments, the present invention contemplates finding acentral location point for a group without using geo-boundaries. In thisapproach, the method relies on the ability to retrieve the currentlocation of all users in a group and quickly average their location.Each user in the group's location is returned as a latitude number andlongitude number. The following is an example to find a common locationusing three points; although this example can be extended to multiplepoints. Other known examples are also contemplated by the presentinvention.

By way of example, the solution breaks down into converting latitude andlongitude into Cartesian coordinates of a sphere radius 1 using thefollowing transformation for each point:X=cos(lon)*cos(lat);Y=sin(lon)*sin(lat); andZ=sin(lat).

Once the three points are converted, the system and method of thepresent invention can apply the cross product N=(B−A)(C−A). As should beunderstood by those of ordinary skill in the art, the cross product is abinary operation on two vectors in a three-dimensional Euclidean spacethat results in another vector which is perpendicular to the planecontaining the two input vectors. In this example, the cross product:

$\begin{matrix}{= {\left( {{{x\; 2} - {x\; 1}},{{y\; 2} - {y\; 1}},{{z\; 2} - {z\; 1}}} \right) \times \left( {{{x\; 3} - {x\; 1}},{{y\; 3} - {y\; 1}},{{z\; 3} - {z\; 1}}} \right)}} \\{= \left( {{\left( {{y\; 2} - {y\; 1}} \right)\left( {{z3}\; - {z\; 1}} \right)} - {\left( {{z2}\; - {z\; 1}} \right)\left( {{y\; 3} - {y\; 1}} \right)}}\mspace{14mu} \right.} \\{{\left( {{z\; 2} - {z\; 1}} \right)\left( {{x\; 3} - {x\; 1}} \right)} - {\left( {{x\; 2} - {x\; 1}} \right)\left( {{z\; 3} - {z\; 1}} \right)}} \\{\left. {{\left( {{x\; 2} - {x\; 1}} \right)\left( {{y\; 3} - {y\; 1}} \right)} - {\left( {{y\; 2} - {y\; 1}} \right)\left( {{x\; 3} - {x\; 1}} \right)}} \right).}\end{matrix}$

In a forth point example, it is also contemplated to look for the crossproduct of N=(B−A)(C−A)(D−A)

Next, the present invention converts N back to latitude and longitude.Its length is not 1, as the vectors A, B, and C were, so it is nownecessary to calculate its length:r=sqrt(xn^2+yn^2+zn^2),where xn, yn, and zn are the coordinates of N.

Finally, the latitude and longitude of the center are:latc=arcsin(zn/r)lonc=arctan(yn/xn).Then, the present invention applies a tan 2(latc,lonc) which will yieldtwo (2) possible points on earth. Then, the present invention finds thecloser of the two points distance wise from the original vectors A,B,C.This will yield the midpoint of the three.

The computing device 14 also includes a processor 20, the memory 22A, anI/O interface 24, and a bus 26. The memory 22A can include local memoryemployed during actual execution of program code, bulk storage, andcache memories which provide temporary storage of at least some programcode in order to reduce the number of times code must be retrieved frombulk storage during execution. In addition, the computing deviceincludes random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), and aCPU.

The computing device 14 is in communication with the external I/Odevice/resource 28 and the storage system 22B. For example, the I/Odevice 28 can comprise any device that enables an individual to interactwith the computing device 14 or any device that enables the computingdevice 14 to communicate with one or more other computing devices usingany type of communications link. The external I/O device/resource 28 maybe for example, a display of a wireless handheld device of thesubscribing user 28.

In general, the processor 20 executes computer program code, which isstored in the memory 22A and/or storage system 22B. While executingcomputer program code, the processor 20 can read and/or write datato/from memory 22A, storage system 22B, and/or I/O interface 24. Theprogram code executes the processes of the invention. The bus 26provides a communications link between each of the components in thecomputing device 14.

The computing device 14 can comprise any general purpose computingarticle of manufacture capable of executing computer program codeinstalled thereon (e.g., a personal computer, server, handheld device,etc.). However, it is understood that the computing device 14 is onlyrepresentative of various possible equivalent-computing devices that mayperform the processes described herein. To this extent, in embodiments,the functionality provided by the computing device 14 can be implementedby a computing article of manufacture that includes any combination ofgeneral and/or specific purpose hardware and/or computer program code.In each embodiment, the program code and hardware can be created usingstandard programming and engineering techniques, respectively.

Similarly, the server 12 is only illustrative of various types ofcomputer infrastructures for implementing the invention. For example, inembodiments, the server 12 comprises two or more computing devices(e.g., a server cluster) that communicate over any type ofcommunications link, such as a network, a shared memory, or the like, toperform the process described herein. Further, while performing theprocesses described herein, one or more computing devices on the server12 can communicate with one or more other computing devices external tothe server 12 using any type of communications link. The communicationslink can comprise any combination of wired and/or wireless links; anycombination of one or more types of networks (e.g., the Internet, a widearea network, a local area network, a virtual private network, etc.);and/or utilize any combination of transmission techniques and protocols.

In embodiments, a charging platform 80 is maintained to provide chargingmodels to charge for services rendered. The charging platform 80 may bemaintained, deployed, created and/or serviced by the service provider.The charging platform 80 is designed to generate a charging record forservices rendered to the subscribing user 50. In embodiments, theservice provider can calculate an amount to be charged, based on manydifferent considerations and generate the charging record to be sent tothe charging platform 80. In turn, the charging platform 80 can generatean invoice and/or deduct a usage charge from an account of thesubscriber 50.

In embodiments, the invention provides a business method that performsthe steps of the invention on a subscription, advertising, and/or feebasis. That is, a service provider, such as a Solution Integrator orlocation based service, could offer to perform the processes describedherein. In this case, the service provider can create, maintain, deploy,support, etc., the computer infrastructure that performs the processsteps of the invention for one or more customers. The customers may be,for example, a mobile user or a third party requesting locationinformation. In return, the service provider can receive payment fromthe customer(s) under a subscription and/or fee agreement and/or theservice provider can receive payment from the sale of advertisingcontent to one or more third parties.

Exemplary Geo-Boundaries

FIG. 2 shows a representative map with geo-boundaries in accordance withaspects of the present invention. The map of FIG. 2 can also berepresentative of certain locations requested to be monitored by thesubscribing user 50 or within a certain vicinity (radius) of thesubscribing user 50. In particular, the map of FIG. 2 shows a pluralityof zones 200 a, 200 b and 200 c that can be displayed to the subscribinguser 50. The zones can be bounded geo-boundaries 200 a, 200 b and 200 c,for example, a restaurant, predefined location or radius about asubscribing user 50. In embodiments, the plurality of zones 200 a, 200 band 200 c can be nested together (a boundary within a boundary as shownat reference numeral 200 b) or remote from one another (as shown at 200b and 200 c of FIG. 2), depending on the specific configuration.

In embodiments, the zones 200 a, 200 b and 200 c can be set up by theservice provider as requested by a subscribing user 50. The zones 200 a,200 b and 200 c can be stored in the storage system 22B or otherdatabase with other relevant information such as subscriber information,e.g., identification, interests, third parties in the subscriber'snetwork, etc. In embodiments, the information can be updatedperiodically in order to change, add or otherwise modify thegeo-boundaries.

Exemplary Processes

FIGS. 3-6 show exemplary processes in accordance with the presentinvention. The steps of FIGS. 3-6 may be implemented on the computerinfrastructure of FIG. 1. The flow diagrams in FIGS. 3-6 may beillustrative of the architecture, functionality, and operation ofpossible implementations of systems, methods and computer programproducts according to various embodiments of the present invention. Inthis regard, each process may represent a module, segment, or portion ofcode, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). It should also be notedthat, in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in theblock may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, twoblocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantiallyconcurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverseorder, depending upon the functionality involved. Each block of the flowdiagrams and combinations of the flow diagrams can be implemented byspecial purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts, or combinations of special purpose hardware andcomputer instructions and/or software, as described above.

Additionally, the invention can take the form of an entirely hardwareembodiment, an entirely software embodiment or an embodiment containingboth hardware and software elements. Software includes but is notlimited to firmware, resident software, microcode, etc. Furthermore, theinvention can take the form of a computer program product accessiblefrom a computer-usable or computer-readable medium providing programcode for use by or in connection with a computer or any instructionexecution system. The software and/or computer program product can beimplemented in the environment of FIG. 1. For the purposes of thisdescription, a computer-usable or computer readable medium can be anyapparatus that can contain, store, communicate, propagate, or transportthe program for use by or in connection with the instruction executionsystem, apparatus, or device. The medium can be an electronic, magnetic,optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system (orapparatus or device) or a propagation medium. Examples of acomputer-readable medium include a semiconductor or solid state memory,magnetic tape, a removable computer diskette, a random access memory(RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), a rigid magnetic disk and an opticaldisk. Current examples of optical disks include compact disk-read onlymemory (CD-ROM), compact disk-read/write (CD-R/W) and DVD.

FIG. 3 shows a flow diagram for a proximity alert implementation inaccordance with the invention. In embodiments, the proximity alertnotifies a subscriber when someone in their social networking group (ora third party having similar interests or other matches) enters adefined radius around the subscriber. This social networking capabilityis implemented using the geo-boundary functionality of the networkcarrier's location based services (LBS) platform. In this embodiment,geo-boundaries are created by the LBS over a specific area and eventsare triggered when a device enters the specific area.

In one example, when a proximity alert is activated by a subscriber, thesocial networking system requests the LBS to construct a geo-boundarycentered on the subscriber with a specific radius (e.g., 1 mile). Eventsare then generated by the LBS platform and sent to the social networkingsystem anytime an “opted-in” device enters or exits the subscriber'sgeo-boundary. The social networking system processes the event todetermine if the user entering the boundary is a member of the socialnetworking system and if the third party and the subscriber belong toany of the same social networking groups or common interests. Inembodiments, the social networking system can first process any matchesand then provide such information to the LBS for active monitoring ofdevices that are known to be owned by a user that meets the matchingcriteria.

If a match is identified, both the third party and subscriber arenotified and, if appropriate, location information is exchanged. Thelocation information can be obtained by active or passive polling ofuser devices. For example, polling of user devices can be at apredetermined time, e.g., every 1 minute. This embodiment can beimplemented using the examples discussed above, e.g., subscribing toeither a service provider or content provider (e.g., social networkingsystem).

More specifically, at step 300, a subscriber of a social network (oruser group) activates a proximity alert. At step 305, the socialnetworking system requests new geo-boundary information from the LBS andsubscribes to events. At step 310, the LBS constructs a geo-boundaryaround the user or within a predefined location, for example. At step315, the LBS notifies the social networking system that a geo-boundaryhas been set. At step 320, the social networking system notifies thesubscriber that the proximity alert is activated. At step 325, thesubscriber is notified of the activation by an alert such as, forexample, a text message, SMS or other communication provided to thesubscriber's handheld (portable) device. At step 330, the LBS identifiesall opted in devices that are within the geo-boundary and which matchthe information provided by the subscriber. At step 335, the LBScommunicates the events for each identified device. The socialnetworking system then processes the event at step 340.

FIG. 4 shows a flow process for processing the events in accordance withaspects of the invention. At step 400, the LBS communicates the eventsfor each identified device to a social networking system. At steps 405,the program control determines whether the device ID matches a member ofa social networking system or other party of interest. If not, theprogram control ends at step 435. If there is a match, at step 410, theprogram control of the social networking system determines whether theuser (matching member) is opted in to allow proximity alerts. If not,the program control ends at step 435. If the user has opted in, at step415, the program control of the social networking system determines ifboth users in the social networking system group together (or othercommonality). If not, the program control ends at step 435. If the users(third party and subscriber) are grouped together, at step 420, theprogram control of the social networking system sends a proximity alertto both the third party (matched user) and the subscriber. At step 425,the third party receives a message that there is a match with thesubscriber (other user) and that the subscriber has requested a locationof the third party. If the third party has opted in, the programcontrol, at step 435, sends a message to the subscriber that a match hasbeen found and provides the location of the third party to thesubscriber.

In additional embodiments, a proximity search can also be implemented bythe present invention. The proximity search is similar to a proximityalert as discussed above, but is not persistent over a period of time.For example, the search capability relies on the same geo-boundarycapability of the LBS, which is constructed and searched for all“opted-in” devices that exist in the geo-boundary immediately after itscreation. Events are generated for each device and sent to the socialnetworking platform, much like discussed above. But, as the events aregenerated, the geo-boundary is removed. The events are processed by thesocial networking system as discussed above, and can be returned to thesubscriber in a single search results list.

FIG. 5 shows a methodology of matching within a defined vicinity inaccordance with aspects of the present invention. More specifically,this capability relies on the LBS platform's geo-boundary functionality,but the geo-boundaries are not centered on users, but rather on areasdesignated by the social networking system as “match-makingestablishments” such as a popular restaurant. In this scenario, thesocial networking system creates a geo-boundary around a designatedlocation (predefined location). The system subscribes to eventsgenerated by the LBS anytime a device enters or exits the designatedlocation. This allows the social networking system to maintain a list ofdevices that are in the established designated location. In thisembodiment, each device is processed to determine if it belongs to aregistered social networking member, which allows the social networkingsystem to maintain a list of members within the “match-makingestablishment”, e.g., designated location. As each member is added tothe list, their profile is compared to the profile of a subscriber'slist. Any matches found are then communicated to the users.

More specifically, at step 500, the program control of the socialnetworking system requests a geo-boundary around a certain location,e.g., restaurant. At step 505, the LBS constructs the geo-boundary. Inembodiments, the geo-boundary may also include a predetermined radiusabout the certain location. At step 510, the LBS notifies the socialnetworking system that the geo-boundary is complete (constructed). Atstep 515, the program control of the social networking system creates alist of third parties to track. This step can also be implemented in anyof the embodiments of the present invention.

At step 520, the LBS generates an event for each opted in device withinthe geo-boundary. At step 525, the program control of the socialnetworking system determines whether the device ID matches the list. Ifnot, the process can end at step 530 or revert back to step 520. At step535, the program control of the social networking system determineswhether the third part is opted in to the system (e.g., receivingmessages and/or providing location information to the system). If not,the process can end at step 530 or revert back to step 520. If the thirdparty is opted in, at step 540, the program control of the socialnetworking system will add the third party to the list of members withinthe geo-boundary.

At step 545, the LBS generates an event for each device (third party)that exits the geo-boundary. At step 550, the program control of thesocial networking system makes a determination as to whether the exitingdevice is on the list. If so, the third party (exiting device) isremoved from the list, at step 555.

FIG. 6 shows a flow diagram for group messaging within a locationfiltering area in accordance with aspects of the present invention. Morespecifically, geo-boundaries are used to provide a capability thatlimits a group message to a subset of the group based on their location.For example, the subscriber initiating the group message identifies thefull group list, a specific location, and a radius around that locationto the social networking system. The social networking system requests ageo-boundary be constructed for the requested area and size. The LBSreturns a list of opted-in devices within the specified area. The socialnetworking system can then message the devices that exist in the grouplist and in the specified area.

In particular, at step 600, a user of a social networking systemrequests location filtered group messages by providing a group list,location and radius. At step 605, a program control of the socialnetworking system requests a new geo-boundary from the LBS andsubscribes to events. At step 610, the LBS constructs a geo-boundaryaround the subscribing user with a given radius (e.g., 1 mile). At step615, the LBS identifies all opted in devices within the geo-boundary. Atstep 620, the LBS removes the geo-boundary and returns a list ofdevices. At step 625, the program control of the social networkingsystem compares the device ID returned from the LBS to the device ID onthe group list. If there is a match, at step 630, the program control ofthe social networking system provides a message to the devices that areon the group list.

In all embodiments, it should be understood that the matches can bedetermined by the LBS (service provider) or the program control of thesocial networking system, depending on the particular implementation.For example, in one implementation, the group lists (or other criteriaused to match users) can be stored on the database of the socialnetworking system, wherein the program control of the social networkingsystem will determine if there are any matches. In anotherimplementation, the group list (or other criteria used to match users)can be stored on the database of the LBS (service provider), wherein theprogram control of the LBS will determine if there are any matches. Inthis case, there would be no need to provide polling information ofevery device to the social networking system.

In further embodiments, the present invention has the capabilityeliminating the use of the LBS, i.e., does not require geo-boundaries.In this implementation, the system and method of the present inventionwill rely on the ability to retrieve the current location of all usersin a group and quickly average their location. Each user in the group'slocation is returned as a latitude number and longitude number and canbe averaged as discussed above.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Asused herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended toinclude the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises”and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify thepresence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of oneor more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, and/or groups thereof.

The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of allmeans or step plus function elements in the claims, if any, are intendedto include any structure, material, or act for performing the functionin combination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. Thedescription of the present invention has been presented for purposes ofillustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive orlimited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications andvariations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the artwithout departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Theembodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain theprinciples of the invention and the practical application, and to enableothers of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention forvarious embodiments with various modifications as are suited to theparticular use contemplated. While the invention has been described interms of embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that theinvention can be practiced with modifications and in the spirit andscope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer system for providing information to asubscriber user, the system comprising: a CPU, a computer readablememory and a computer readable storage media; first program instructionsto query one or more databases for matching information of one or morethird parties which is associated with one or more mobile devices whichpass within a predefined location at one or more predefined intervals,wherein the matching information includes the one or more third partieswhich are members of a same social network or interest group as thesubscribing user; second program instructions to provide locationinformation, to the subscribing user, of the one or more mobile deviceswhich have the matching information and pass within the predefinedlocation; and third program instruction to send a message to the one ormore mobile devices which are found to be a match, the message includesa request opt-in authorization for sending the location information tothe subscribing user, prior to sending the location information to thesubscribing user.
 2. The computer system of claim 1, further comprisingfourth program instructions to request a service provider to constructthe predefined location as boundaries at the one or more predefinedintervals.
 3. The computer system of claim 2, wherein the serviceprovider performs the querying.
 4. The computer system of claim 1,wherein a content provider receives events from a service provider thatthe one or mobile devices have passed within the predefined location andthe content provider queries the one or more databases for the matchinginformation and sends the location information to the subscribing user.5. The computer system of claim 4, wherein the content provider sendsthe message to the one or more mobile devices that are found to be amatch.
 6. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the one or moredatabases which are queried are databases associated with one or moresocial networking systems.
 7. The computer system of claim 1, whereinthe predefined location is a radius about the subscribing user.
 8. Thecomputer system of claim 1, wherein the predefined location includes aradius about a certain physical location.
 9. The computer system ofclaim 1, further comprising fourth program instructions to determinethat the one or more mobile devices is on a group list provided by thesubscribing user.
 10. The computer system of claim 1, further comprisingfourth program instructions to remove one or more devices which are on alist provided by the subscribing user when the one or more mobiledevices exit the predefined location.
 11. The computer system of claim1, wherein the predefined location is a geo-boundary within ageo-boundary.
 12. The computer system of claim 1, further comprisingfourth program instructions to filter out identification information ofthe active mobile device.
 13. The computer system of claim 1, furthercomprising fourth program instructions to deconstruct the predefinedlocation after providing the location information.
 14. A computerprogram product comprising a computer usable storage medium havingreadable program code tangibly embodied in the storage medium, thecomputer program product being operable to: query one or more databasesof at least one or more social networking systems or interest groups toobtain information associated with one or more users with mobile devicesentering a predefined location; determine a match between the one ormore users with mobile devices and a subscriber using the queriedinformation; obtain location information of the one or more users whichare matched to the subscriber; provide the location information of theone or more matched users to the subscriber; and deconstruct thepredefined location after providing the location information.
 15. Thecomputer program product of claim 14, wherein the computer programproduct is further operable to determine a central location point forthe subscribing user and the one or more third parties.
 16. The computerprogram product of claim 15, wherein the determining of the centrallocation point comprises: retrieving a location of the subscribing userand the one or more third parties; and averaging the locations of thesubscribing user and the one or more third parties.
 17. A method forproviding information to a subscribing user: querying one or moredatabases for matching information of one or more third parties which isassociated with one or more mobile devices which pass within apredefined location at one or more predefined intervals, wherein thematching information includes the one or more third parties which aremembers of a same social network or interest group as that of thesubscribing user; providing location information to the subscribing userof the one or more mobile devices which have the matching informationand pass within the predefined location; and determining a centrallocation point for the subscribing user and the one or more thirdparties by averaging the locations of the subscribing user and the oneor more third parties.
 18. The method of claim 17, wherein thedetermining of the central location point comprises: retrieving alocation of the subscribing user and the one or more third parties; andaveraging the locations of the subscribing user and the one or morethird parties.
 19. The method of claim 17, further comprising: receivingfrom the subscribing user a request to activate a proximity alert; andnotifying the subscribing user that the proximity alert is activated.20. The method of claim 17, further comprising: deconstructing thegeo-boundary after identifying opted-in devices within the geo-boundary;comparing the opted-in identified devices within the geo-boundary withthe group list; and providing a group message to opted-in identifieddevices which match devices provided on the group list.